2016-2017 Archive

2016 started with a long awaited opportunity to take photos of steam in the snow at Keighley, before returning to more familiar haunts of South Devon and the Bluebell Railway. I broke new ground in the summer with a tour of some lines in the west, before returning to the water to take photos of the Dawlish sea wall from a kayak.

I wasn't so active in 2017, whilst I started early with my first ever trip to the GCR, my railway photography also ended early, with my last trip being to Scotland in July.

The Jacobite - 13+14/7/17

Fort William was the final stopping point on a tour of Western Scotland with three school friends. Whilst I couldn't convince them to fork out for a ride on the Jacobite, they were more than happy to see the train cross the 'Harry Potter viaduct', and a walk around the Glenfinnan estate allowed me to take photos of two smokebox first run pasts. We arrived on the 13th just in time for the last departure of the day from Fort William, under very poor lighting conditions. So, despite being a non-railway holiday, I managed to get reasonable photos of Black 5s 45407 and 45212 and K1 62005.

With the enduring popularity of Harry Potter, I wonder if after its incarceration at the studio tour, a certain red locomotive may find itself in the pool of regular motive power for the Jacobite? I can't imagine many enthusiasts would agree with me, but I certainly hope that this will happen!

North Wales - June 2017

A very wet few days camping in Beddgelert was unfortunately cut short by a leaky tent. However, I did still manage to pack in trips on the Ffestiniog, WHR and Talyllyn, with a visit to the excellent Purple Moose Brewery's shop in Porthmadog. It was even warm enough to sit in the open carriage at the Talyllyn. Not all bad then!

National Railway Museum - 2/6/17

Just a couple of photos of the Bluebell's P class 178 during its residency at the NRM. Unfortunately, it wasn't in steam during my visit.

South Devon Railway - Winter Gala - 16/2/17

A surprise few days off allowed for an impromptu trip to Devon for the SDR's winter gala. I was only able to make it for one of the less intensive weekdays and chose the Thursday as the Beattie well tank would be in steam alongside 6412 with two autocoaches. The weather was kind and after walking from Staverton to Dartington, I would even say I was warm! As with last year, I failed to make the most of the location at Dartington, though noted on the last return trip, there was an amusing line of photographers lined up where I had been in the early afternoon - perhaps I should have been there later on! The drab finish of the maroon autocoach seem to be such a contrast with the 64xx and other autocoach that it confused my camera, making it strangely difficult to take a good photo of the formation.

Collett goods 3205, now in GWR livery, took one of the well tank's round trips while the latter received some attention. 30587 certainly was a popular guest, the first train was nearly full!

I would like to thank the staff at Buckfastleigh for an act of good customer service. After being stuck behind a tanker at 25mph on a usually fast but windy A road, I arrived with less than 10 minutes before the first departure. With relatively few services running, my day's plan relied upon catching this first train, and this looked increasingly unlikely as the queue in the ticket office was moving very slowly. The platform staff were aware of the queue and whilst they tried to encourage those of us left in the queue to catch the next train, or to pay with cash on the train, they did hold the train until I and another couple of customers paid by card, resulting in the train leaving 5 minutes late. I certainly wouldn't expect this on an intensive gala day, but it was a pleasing display of common sense on a quieter timetable.

Great Central Railway - Winter Gala - 29/1/17

The visit of the Bluebell's Q class was enough to finally tempt me to the Great Central Railway for my first visit of the year. The Q headlined an impressive 8 locomotive line up, quite impressive for a January gala! I started my day at Quorn and Woodhouse, with a low mist and a moderate frost, and church bells in the distance creating a fantastic atmosphere. The first passenger carrying train was double headed by the Q and Sir Lamiel, and for some reason it failed to stop at Quorn, taking the tea room staff with it! Luckily the announcement was met with amusement rather than any annoyance by those gathered on the platform. By the time the next train arrived, the platform was very busy, and the railway stayed impressively busy all day.

I still haven't learnt to cope well with these kind of conditions, but the railway put on a good show, with so many combinations of locomotives and stock there was a lot of variety to photograph! I wasn't too adventurous with my locations as I don't know the area at all, choosing to stick to the stations. There are few opportunities from the platforms due to the number of people and the fact that the locomotives were all facing Leicester. Better opportunities were not hard to find and the service was so intensive, you could easily spend a sunnier day in one position and not get bored!

Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway - 5/9/16

I visited the Lake District with a friend over the first weekend in September. I had hoped to visit the railway on the Friday for a quick round trip before setting up camp and picking him up from the station, but a police incident and road closure to Haverthwaite put paid to that plan. I don't usually take my friends to steam railways but on this occasion, I could get away with the excuse of a cheap park and ride before a cruise to Bowness. The Saturday had been a wash out and so by Monday with most of our kit still wet, we were quite keen for a relatively dry activity for the last day of our trip.

I was a little disappointed to see Victor running, rather than the Fairburn tank, as both had been in steam over the weekend according to their Twitter feed, but Victor did look very smart in a faux-BR/LMS lined crimson livery, complimenting the crimson and cream coaches nicely. As can be seen by the pictures, the rain didn't let up much all day. I don't usually edit my photos but thought it wouldn't harm to try to improve a few of this set.

Dawlish Sea Wall - 30/8/16

This album is quite different from my usual! A kayaking trip with my Dad from Teignmouth to Dawlish and back gave us the opportunity to take photos of the trains running along the sea wall. Misty conditions and a less than perfect waterproof camera made photography difficult enough, but my rusty kayaking skills and my Dad's inexperience photographing trains ensured that we didn't get any great photos! We did however have a good time and, whilst I could have edited these photos, I thought it was best to leave the raw images to show just how difficult it can be to take photos in a narrow sea kayak, even if the water is relatively calm!

Dartmouth Steam Railway - 26/8/16

The severe Torbay traffic forced this family trip to start at Churston rather than Kingswear. It was regatta weekend at Dartmouth which presumably contributed to the deadlock! The plan was a round trip to Paignton before heading to Kingswear and crossing the Dart to have lunch at the regatta. This unfortunately meant taking the train without the observation car, headed by a spotless 5542. Despite not having the comfort of the observation car, we found extra comfort in an extremely well turned out Mk1. Dinmore Manor was in charge of the other set.

We took the ferry over to Dartmouth to take in the regatta, watching some very entertaining rowing races and a kayaking display before returning to Churston in the same comfortable carriage behind 5542.

Severn Valley Railway - 22/7/16

I recently realised that I had never been to the SVR and thought that really had to change! It was another scorching hot day, which was great for a relaxing day but the clear sunny conditions really don't get on with my camera! At Kidderminster I joined 7812 Erlestoke Manor on the Mk1 set, fantastically restored with wooden interiors, before passing D1062 Western Courier on a charter with a Hawksworth inspection saloon. At Bewdley, my train crossed paths with Ivatt 4 43106 at the head of the LNER and LMS rake, whilst 7802 Bradley Manor was in light steam, presumably warming up for the weekend ahead.

I broke my journey at Highley and had a quick look around the Engine House before catching Taw Valley on the mixed GWR rake on the way back to Kidderminster. 09 shunter Dick Hardy was shunting permanent way wagons whilst the Bulleid ran round, before taking me on a full return trip. On the approach to Bridgenorth, the train ground to a halt. The driver walked down the train to investigate and was absolutely fuming when he returned. On arrival at Bridgenorth a man was being restrained on the platform - he had apparently attempted to climb on the roof - quite a peculiar occurence that from what I could see, was dealt with admirably by the railway's staff.

The SVR really is a complete GWR experience and I will hopefully not wait 25 years before visiting again!

Gloucestershire and Warwickshire Railway - 21/7/16

My tour continued with another first for me - a visit to the Gloucestershire and Wawrickshire Railway. I joined the train at Toddington, where an absolutely immaculate 7903 Foremarke Hall sat at the head of a train of matching chocolate and cream Mk1s. I enjoyed the round trip to Cheltenham Racecourse before driving back to Winchcombe to visit the excellent exhibition coaches and to photograph Foremarke Hall on its next round trip. A DMU was also running, and going all the way to Laverton.

The G&WR appears to be a very smart, well oiled machine. Its works complex at Toddington is vast and surely to the envy of most UK preserved railways.

East Somerset Railway - 20/7/16

I had planned for the first railway visit of this trip to be the Dean Forest Railway. However, the for the first portion of my Holiday, I was camping in the Mendips and found out that I was only 10 miles away from the East Somerset Railway. As a short railway, I had never considered it worth much of a journey, but seeing as I was in the area, I felt that it had to be worth a visit. The first thing to notice is the fantastic station building at Cranmore, built from reclaimed material from Lodge Hill station. The IoWR's Ivatt 2 46447 was in charge of the modest 3 coach train of Mk1s.

The short ride to the very pleasant Mendip Vale station looked like it would provide the first smoke-box first shots of the locomotive, unfortunately a 'gentleman' jumped out in front of me as the loco came into frame. I haven't included the resulting photo, but needless to say, I was disappointed! Luckily there are several photography opportunities and I managed to get several acceptable shots of the Ivatt despite my camera's/my own inability to get good results in bright sunlight. I spent a good deal of time looking around the imposing Cranmore locomotive works and it was pleasing to see how many volunteers were at work on a Wednesday!

The ESR is a very well established, well run outfit. It has excellent facilities and all that it really lacks is length of running line! It has however, clearly thrived in the past few decades despite this!

Bluebell Railway - Model Railway Weekend - 25/6/16

I made a spur of the moment decision to spend a rare free day at the Bluebell. The Model Railway weekend brought an added attraction of the 4 coach Victorian train, including the launch of LCDR 3188, top and tailed by Bluebell and the H class. Camelot is a favourite locomotive of mine and it was my first chance to ride behind it since its latest overhaul. The S15 was on the other main service train.

I had aimed to get to the railway in time for the first shuttle run from Sheffield Park, but unfortunately Google Maps' prediction doesn't take into account the slow drivers and lack of safe overtaking opportunities on the A22! I instead had to change my plan and head straight for Horsted Keynes and caught the first couple of trains from the lineside.

The model railway show was much the same as last year, with many of the same displays present. At Sheffield Park there was an opportunity to walk underneath the Q class and P class 178, whilst the C class gave rides in the Queen Mary brake van.

Dartmoor Railway - 24/2/16

I walked from Meldon Reservoir to the railway line, turning back towards Meldon Quarry and across the viaduct. Its been a few years since my last visit and in some ways I do regret going back! It was nice to see that their 08 shunter has been repainted, but there remains a huge amount of stock, mostly appearing to be Southern electrics, cluttering the sidings and providing a bit of an eyesore. Also of note was the Polar Express set, looking pleasingly well cared for in the winter sunlight. Once over the viaduct, the walk itself only really has views away from the national park, and follows the A30 for some distance.

The station at Okehampton was a welcome sight, with diesels visible on platform 2 I thought that perhaps this was a sign of recent activity. On arrival, I was rather disappointed. Whilst platform 1 remains beautifully well cared for with its cafe, the model shop is conspicuously absent. The three diesels didn't look particularly well cared for, though I understand that they have been running recently. The class 33 certainly looked externally tired compared to its Bluebell days. The worst eyesores at both ends of the line were the faded Southern region liveries on the modern Mk3/Mk4 stock.

I don't want to criticise a preserved line, especially considering that I have contributed so little to them myself, but it is a shame to see that the line is not living up to its huge potential. I also know very little of the working of this line and the society behind it. In some ways I wish that I had walked along the line in the other direction towards Sourton, as it is easier to imagine a Bulleid Pacific thundering through the wide cuttings.

It is easy to say whilst sitting at my computer, but I feel that provision of run round facilities would lead to a dramatic improvemen. I would certainly consider visiting again if a visit to the West Country coincides with the visit of a steam engine to the line. A Beattie well tank on brakevan rides or a GWR auto-train visiting for a week or so would go down a treat.

South Devon Railway - Winter Gala - 21/2/16

There aren't many ​February galas that can boast 6 engines in steam, goods trains and a beer festival, but the South Devon Railway could do just that! Regular visitor and former resident 1450 was one of three locos in BR lined green, whilst Bodmin-based 4612 added some much missed GWR flavour to the line. 1369 was appearing in BR black, looking superb when in charge of the crimson and cream set. L92 was also in steam.

I finally returned for a longer stint alongside the Dart on the Dartington Estate. I didn't feel that I had done so well at the time, but I'm quite happy with how some of the photos came out. I also managed to edge a bit closer to the Bishops Bridge loop, which doesn't make for the best photos, but did provide a different angle of L92 shunting.

The railway put on a really good show, with so much variety. There were countless combinations throughout the day, with most of the locos taking turns on the ever-changing goods set. I didn't manage to see too many run-pasts of the goods trains, but saw plenty of interesting manouvers, and had just enough time to enjoy a pint at Staverton. My day ended by watching the shunting in the failing light at Buckfastleigh, though photography in low light is not something I am yet capable of!

Keighley and Worth Valley Railway - 17/1/16

I was due to play hockey on this day, but the weather had other ideas. My Mum was visiting me for the weekend and she suggested that we go to the NYMR as it may be a good opportunity to take photos in the snow, something that I've wanted to do for a long time. Unfortunately, the NYMR was closed, but happily the K&WVR was running a two train service. There were no travel problems, and once off the motorway we were treated to a lovely drive through the country to Oxenhope. We were greeted by a roaring fire, before joining the 2pm round trip to Keighley behind 4MT 75058.

This was only my second visit to the line, and unfortunately it was another short one. I hope to return for a gala this year as it really is a fantastic line. Each station has something worth getting off for, and the stations are incredibly well maintained. The staff/volunteeers were very friendly and I was even allowed to charge my camera battery in the shop at Oxenhope. Aside from the vintage stock, everything fits within the era, and I am a big fan of when a railway aims for this consistency (another line that does this is the Swanage Railway).